New Delhi: The Supreme Court will continue hearing on August 18 the arguments on a batch of pleas challenging the July 6 circular of the University Grants Commission (UGC) mandating to conduct the final term exams by the end of September.
A bench of Justice Ashok Bhushan posted the matter for hearing on August 18 as the arguments on the pleas, which also seek cancellation of final term examination in view of COVID-19 situation, remain inconclusive.
Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for a student, highlighted that the severity of the situation and said India is third in the world in the most number of COVID positive cases, adding that there are almost 900 deaths in a day and 50-60,000 new cases coming daily.
Singhvi said that for five months, the MHA has shut everything. "There is a direct nexus between teaching and taking of exams. How can there be no teaching without exams!" he added.
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The senior advocate argued that education is not special here; pandemic here is special. "Pandemic applies to everyone and everything," he said. Singhvi, while terming the UGC circular as 'farman', said the Commission has issued the same to conduct exams by September 30.
Singhvi further contended that even a first-year student will be able to say that this is not federal. "This special situation is extra-ordinary. The pandemic is state-neutral, political colour-neutral, people-neutral," he said.
Senior advocate Shyam Divan, appearing for another petitioner, told the bench that if the lockdown was going on, could UGC have promulgated its guidelines? If it could not do it at that time, it cannot do it now, he said.